WHAT ARE ESSENTIAL OILS?
The essential in essential oil arises from the idea that it captures the essence of the plant. Through a variety of processes, a plant will be reduced to its concentrated natural oil. Sometimes companies will mix this oil with a carrier oil — but not always.
Essential oil users believe the products to be more potent than fresh or dried herbs because of its concentration. One bottle of essential oil can contain bushels of plant matter. This substance is also volatile, meaning it evaporates quickly. That’s why so many essential oils are mainstays of aromatherapy.
Entire plants or parts of a plant can be collected to extract their essential oils. Here’s a shortlist of the plant parts that companies gather for means of extraction.
- Leaves
- Bark
- Resin
- Roots
- Stems
- Rind
Every company has a secret recipe for their essential oils. A peppermint oil, for example, might be made with just the leaves, or the leaves, roots, and stems. Whatever the recipe, the secret ingredient in all essential oils is terpenes. These delightful molecules produce the scents we love in nature, such as citrus, pine, and vanilla.
WHAT IS CBD OIL?
While essential oils are extracted from a range of plants, CBD oil is mainly extracted from hemp. Unlike essential oil, the primary reason companies, like Balance CBD, process hemp plants are for their cannabidiol or CBD. You can also extract CBD oil from cannabis plants, but it’s illegal in most US states.
As with essential oils, CBD oil contains terpenes. That’s because hemp plants have unique terpene profiles. Many strains differ in their profiles, too. That’s why it’s important to buy from a company that can provide you a terpene profile.
Terpenes are great and all, but the real reason consumers love CBD oil is for its cannabidiol and other cannabinoid content. Within every dropper of CBD oil, you’ll find a host of cannabinoids. But the amount greatly depends on the product you’ve purchased. A CBD isolate, for example, will just contain CBD. Whereas a Full Spectrum CBD Oil contains many cannabinoids, such as CBC, CBN, and the legal limit of THC.
Source: The Colorado Sun
